Publication

This publication focuses on economic stagnation and demographic change in Russia and the implications of these developments for the country. Key insights include 1) tax revenues have been declining since the late 2000s and the oil dependency of Russia’s budget has increased significantly; 2) to keep public budgets stable, the Russian government has been forced to raise taxes and increase the age of retirement; 3) Moscow is controlling budget policy in a more centralized way and restricting public oversight of government budgets; 4) in this complex and politically tense situation, conflicts between elites are erupting with increasing frequency, bearing risks for President Putin’s fourth term in office, and more.